University of Texas Investment Management Company’s board of directors gave $5.1 million in bonuses to 30 employees Tuesday, citing high investment returns that raised the Permanent University Fund asset values by $1 billion this year.

The Permanent University Fund manages royalties of 2.1 million acres of West Texas land owned by the UT System and each year, UT and Texas A&M University receives a small percentage payout of the PUF. The payout funds enhanced academic programs, the Center for Technology Commercialization and library services at UT.

Bruce Zimmerman, UTIMCO’s chief investment officer and CEO, said the company’s efforts to hire the best money managers paid off after they outperformed their market counterparts. But the extra compensation UTIMCO distributed to its employees is very small compared to what a private investment management company would provide, Zimmerman said.

“The incentive compensation represents less than one-half of 1 percent of the value added,” he said. “As a contrast, a hedge fund manager typically gets 20 percent of the value added.”

He said the investment specialists who benefited from the bonus ranged from individuals with undergraduate degrees and few years of work experience to senior management. Of the $5.1 million bonus, Zimmerman was awarded $1.15 million, double his normal salary.